Extra…Extra…Read all about it! UP sues Photographer (and his Mom!)
Hot off of the Model Railroad News presses comes this tidbit of information in Volume 11, Issue 8 - August 2005, page 34.
I’ll have to let you read it for yourselves, but I do agree with the author’s last sentence…“Frankly, it would have been cheaper and more effective if UP had simply purchased the entire run, sold them as railfan memorabilia, and turned a tidy profit on a dandy product.”
And another great quote from the same article…“Maybe the rest of the railroad should sue the legal deptment for defamation of character.”
I kind of agree with UP, because they’re equiptment, etc. might be trade-marked. It would be illegal to sell calendars with UP pictures etc. on it.[:O]Although, UP could have just warned them instead of suing them!
AS Scott puts it so well: “You can’t spell stupid without UP” Perhaps we should sue to recoup grants fradulently procured from our government when the UP was built?
Will
I gotta agree. UP has THEIR trademark. That’s just the way it is. To do it right, the calendar would have to be licensed. It was nice when the railroads looked the other way on these issues. Now they don’t and that’s their legal right.
We’re on a trail subscription with MRN. Honestly, I’d rather read about great layouts and view fantastic scenery that read about this type stuff. Model Railroader has nothing to be worried about from the competition so far.
I would imagine any large corporation with a highly visible trademark would do the same thing in this situation. It is all about controling your company’s image. Hopefully they (Union Pacific) are proceeding with the lawsuit only to stop the unauthorized distribution of their trademark, not filing for any monetary damages. This company has made it loud and clear that they would persue legal action if they feel their precious shield and wings have been used without their authorization.
For example, if I was making a video about the daily habits of Americans, I could show some people drinking coke without having to get permission from Coca Cola. As long as the intent is to inform or educate, and the usage of the logo is not the main subject, then fair use applies.
This also suggests that if I was doing a piece about American railroads, I could show a potpouri of representative images, and fair use would mean I could show these images without the need to get permission from dozens of sources.
And how can one do a critical piece regarding something about the UP or some other railroad if they can put you into a corner by simply not giving permission to show their stuff?
Guess the guy needs to not publi***he logo anywhere on the calendar, and make sure all the images have the UP shield in shadow, in the far distance, or under a good coat of grime. You can print the words Union Pacific all you want, just not their logo. [swg]